European record holder Jimmy Gressier and former European cross country champion Yann Schrub have been named in the French team for the European Running Championships in Brussels-Leuven on 12-13 April.
In-form Gressier, who set a new European 5km record of 12:57 in Lille on 16 March, will be taking on the men’s half marathon.
It will be only his third race at the distance, his personal best being a superb 59:46 when finishing fifth at the World Athletics Road Running Championships in Riga in 2023. A former European record holder over 10km with a best of 27:07, he has also set a new European indoor record over 5000m this winter (12:44.09).
Shrub seeking winning return to Belgium
Schrub won the senior men’s race at the SPAR European Cross Country Championships in Brussels and as a winner of 10,000m silver and bronze at the last two European Athletics Championships in Roma 2024 and Munich 2022, he has all the pedigree to get back on the podium in Belgium in the men’s 10km.
He will be joined in a potent men’s 10k team by Etienne Daguinos, who was sixth over 5km at the 2023 World Athletics Road Running Championships. Daguinos also held the European 10km record with 27:04 in Lille last November, before it was subsequently beaten by Sweden’s Andreas Almgren in Valencia in January (26:53).
The women’s selections include former world and European gold medal winning triathlete Emma Lombardi in the 10km. France have named a 21-strong team for the inaugural edition of these championships.
Chris Broadbent for European Athletics